I've never played any Half Life games

[Heresiarch]

...except for Counterstrike 1.4 to 1.6, and I'm very good at it. But otherwise, I've never played any of the canon series. Does this makes me a faggot? Should I play them one day, or I'm missing out one of the awesomest game evah?

 

[Morgoth]

Play them immediately or burn in hellfire.

 

[Surf Solar]

You didn't miss anything.

 

[Morgoth]

Surf Solar has been reported for blasphemy.

 

[Darth Roxor]

Play Opposing Force, ignore the rest.

 

[Destroid]

Unless you are into single player FPS, there isn't much of value.

 

[catfood]

The original is the only good one.

 

[Metro]

The first is pretty good. Although you'll want to stop playing when you get to Xen. The base game is long enough such that you probably won't even want to bother with the expansions. HL2 is okay but grossly overrated. The overly long vehicle sections are extremely annoying but it has some cool settings that make you forget it's basically on-rails.

 

[Zero Credibility]

Try Black Mesa. It's free and quite fun actually. Not exactly like the original, but a hell of a lot better then HL2.

 

[Morgoth]

Black Mesa was a forgettable turd. Only play the original + Opfor. Then proceed with the HL2 series.

 

[Quilty]

Never touched those either. They just seem too boring.

 

[DraQ]

Start with Half-Life 1.

 

[Zero Credibility]

Black Mesa was a forgettable turd. Only play the original + Opfor. Then proceed with the HL2 series.

If Black Mesa is shit, then why the hell would you recommend HL2? It's basically the same, only with derpier story, worse enemies and half the bloody time you are just escorting that bloody Mary Sue.

 

[DraQ]

The first is pretty good. Although you'll want to stop playing when you get to Xen.

GTFO.
Xen is awesomely alien and cool change of pace. No amount of shitty platforming will change that, especially after you have already handled Residue Processing - the actual spurious derpy platforming section of the game.

Without Xen HL would be just another FPS exclusively about shooting enemies in rooms full of crates.

 

[Spectacle]

Half-Life's way of integrating the story into gameplay was unique at the time and has had huge influence on gaming since then, but the game itself is nothing special. The same goes for HL2, except it's no longer innovative and the story and characters are much derpier.

I say give the original a spin and see if you like it, it's not a bad shooter.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

Half-Life's way of integrating the story into gameplay was unique at the time and has had huge influence on gaming since then, but the game itself is nothing special. The same goes for HL2, except it's no longer innovative and the story and characters are much derpier.

I say give the original a spin and see if you like it, it's not a bad shooter.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Except that the same way of integrating the story into gameplay was in Cybermage.

 

[Coriolanus]

HL1 single player campaign was OK but overrated - it's not as good as the classic FPS oldies. Great multiplayer though, one of the most fun I've had on LAN with friends.

Half-Life's way of integrating the story into gameplay was unique at the time and has had huge influence on gaming since then, but the game itself is nothing special.

I think it's the opposite. HL1, for one, had zero cutscenes.

HL2 was very ambitious but turned out mediocre. Entirely skippable.

 

[Stonewolf]

The second one is the only good one.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

By the way, the series are overrated (in my opinion), so I'd recommend you to try it just to see for yourself.

 

[octavius]

Play HL 1 and especially Opposing Force. Blue Shift is not really worth it.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Play HL 1 and especially Opposing Force. Blue Shift is not really worth it.

This. If you decide to go whole hog on HL1, skip Decay as well as its only gimmick is co-op play.

 

[Don Peste]

It will not play the same. Your only chance is to have a son, raise him like it's 1999 and make him play it.
Then, die happy.

 

[aris]

1. Hl1 is good as kind of a tour of something that was once quite new and innovative, and it has solid FPS-mechanics, or if you're a nostalgia fag (you can't be a graphics whore, HL1 did not age gracefully). HL2 and episode 1 and 2 are really good.

 

[Heresiarch]

Wow, didn't expect so much discrepancies between you guys' opinions. So it seems both HL1 and HL2 are very good and very bad with only opposing force being the only universally accepted one. But then again isn't that just an expansion pack? Not playing as Gordon? Wut?

My next gen bairns is so confused and is telling me I should stick to Planetside 2 instead.

 

[octavius]

only opposing force being the only universally accepted one. But then again isn't that just an expansion pack? Not playing as Gordon? Wut?

It's an expansion pack and you play as Gordon, but what makes it extra fun is the fights with allied marines against the aliens. Also, no boring jumping puzzles IIRC. Just more and better action, like a good expansion should be. Blue Shift is a good example of what an expansion should not be.